Former Rams coach Spagnoulo ripped by Saints player

Credit: Getty Images

Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo of the New Orleans Saints sends a sign to his defense during a game against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field Field at Mile High on October 28, 2012 in Denver, Colorado. The Broncos defeated the Saints 34-14. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)

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(FootballStL) -- Former Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo may have trouble holding onto his job as Defensive Coordinator with the New Orleans Saints. In his one year on the job the Saints set the NFL record for most yards allowed in a season with 7,042. They gave up an average of 28.4 points a game to rank 31st in the league in that department. Pretty dreadful showing. And now, at least one of Spagnuolo's players wants him gone.

According to a report in the New Orleans Times-Picayune an anonymous Saints player is quoted as saying Spagnuolo treats players like "crap". The player said, "Trust me, all the guys were being politically correct this season when answering questions. It's bad." He went on to say, "Players have no say in anything. It was (a) complete opposite from before where it was a simple D that players had a lot of control and say. We couldn't suggest (expletive). Nothing ever changed. It was his way only. He does have a good-guy persona, but he's a control freak who treats people like crap. He has no patience and zero personality. Don't even get me started on lack of ability to adjust during games. Bad, bad, bad."

Wow. Not exactly a glowing endorsement of Spagnuolo's work. Not exactly a surprise either for those who knew Spagnuolo when he was in St. Louis. He was a massive control freak here, too. He insisted pictures from the Rams glory days be removed from the walls. He told one of the great offensive line coaches of all time, Jim Hanifan, that he wasn't welcome to workout at Rams Park. He fired several longtime behind-the- scenes employees who had been with the Rams organization for many years. The same employees who had been good enough to serve under Scott Linehan, Mike Martz, Dick Vermeil, Rich Brooks and others when the team played in Los Angeles. They weren't good enough though, for a rookie head coach like Steve Spagnuolo.

In my opinion, Spagnuolo was the worst head coach in the history of St. Louis professional football. That includes some of the weaker coaches with the old football Cardinals. Bob Holloway's name comes immediately to mind. I'll go with Spagnuolo as the worst of the lot. His three year record was 10-38, and he helped build a roster that was perhaps the weakest in the entire NFL. Throw in his mean spirited nature with longtime employees and you've got a disaster of a head coach. Now the Saints have a disaster of a Defensive Coordinator.

Sean Payton will return as the Saints head coach in 2013. He already has one player going to the media to voice his displeasure with Spagnuolo. Others may soon follow if they feel they can put enough pressure on Payton to fire Spags.

When Spagnuolo was fired in St. Louis as head coach a number of former Rams employees threw a party to celebrate the moment. I'm guessing there may be another party thrown in New Orleans any day now.